2026-01-25

Perth 73 - 74 Melbourne

Perth and Melbourne played a closely contested game that came down to the final possession. The Wildcats held a 12-point lead after the first quarter, but the 36ers rallied to take a halftime lead. The game was decided in the fourth quarter, where the teams traded baskets and free throws. Melbourne ultimately prevailed by a single point, winning 74-73. The game was a defensive struggle for both teams, with each shooting under 40% from the field. However, Melbourne's superior free-throw shooting (24-of-31, 77.4%) proved to be the difference, allowing them to stay close and execute in the final minutes. The 36ers' ability to generate more free-throw attempts was a key factor in their victory, as they converted 14 of their 18 attempts in the game. The Wildcats also had a strong performance from Jo Lual-Acuil Jr, who led both teams in scoring with 24 points and 11 rebounds.

Score Flow

Perth

Player MIN PTS REB AST FG FG% 3P 3P% FT FT% OR DR STL BLK TO PF +/-
Jo Lual-Acuil JrJ. Lual-Acuil Jr 27:59 24 11 3 10-17 58.8 0-1 0.0 4-9 44.4 4 7 1 1 2 3 -1
Kristian DoolittleK. Doolittle (#5) 35:17 19 4 0 7-19 36.8 2-6 33.3 3-3 100.0 1 3 3 0 0 1 +4
Ben HenshallB. Henshall (#10) 29:41 14 3 3 5-12 41.7 1-5 20.0 3-4 75.0 0 3 1 2 2 4 -14
Dylan WindlerD. Windler (#3) 34:14 6 8 2 1-5 20.0 1-4 25.0 3-4 75.0 1 7 3 0 1 4 -3
Elijah PepperE. Pepper (#40) 28:32 2 2 3 1-5 20.0 0-4 0.0 0-0 0.0 0 2 0 0 2 3 -11
David OkweraD. Okwera (#35) 12:56 4 3 0 1-3 33.3 0-1 0.0 2-5 40.0 1 2 0 2 0 3 +1
Dontae Russo-NanceD. Russo-Nance (#1) 12:14 2 3 1 1-2 50.0 0-1 0.0 0-1 0.0 0 3 1 0 0 2 +15
Jesse WagstaffJ. Wagstaff (#24) (C) 06:17 2 1 1 0-1 0.0 0-1 0.0 2-2 100.0 0 1 1 1 0 2 +0
Lat MayenL. Mayen (#2) 01:20 0 0 0 0-1 0.0 0-1 0.0 0-0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 +0
Sunday DechS. Dech (#8) 11:38 0 1 0 0-4 0.0 0-1 0.0 0-0 0.0 0 1 1 1 0 0 +4
TEAM TOTALS - 73 40 13 26-69 37.7 4-25 16.0 17-28 60.7 9 31 11 7 7 22 -

Melbourne

Player MIN PTS REB AST FG FG% 3P 3P% FT FT% OR DR STL BLK TO PF +/-
Jesse EdwardsJ. Edwards (#14) 25:57 18 17 0 6-9 66.7 0-0 0.0 6-7 85.7 2 15 0 0 2 3 +13
Finn DelanyF. Delany (#7) 28:20 11 4 0 2-9 22.2 1-4 25.0 6-6 100.0 0 4 0 0 2 2 -17
Chris GouldingC. Goulding (#43) (C) 27:50 3 1 1 1-9 11.1 0-5 0.0 1-2 50.0 0 1 1 1 4 2 -11
Tyson WalkerT. Walker (#2) 07:23 2 0 0 1-1 100.0 0-0 0.0 0-0 0.0 0 0 0 0 2 0 -8
Dash DanielsD. Daniels (#4) 24:02 1 3 2 0-3 0.0 0-2 0.0 1-2 50.0 0 3 0 0 0 1 -3
Milton DoyleM. Doyle (#35) 24:05 24 4 8 7-14 50.0 3-7 42.9 7-8 87.5 0 4 2 0 1 1 +12
Malith MacharM. Machar (#9) 11:02 7 1 0 2-4 50.0 1-2 50.0 2-2 100.0 0 1 0 0 0 4 +15
Fabijan KrslovicF. Krslovic (#18) 14:05 3 3 0 1-4 25.0 1-2 50.0 0-0 0.0 2 1 0 0 2 3 -12
Tanner KrebsT. Krebs (#13) 18:14 2 6 2 1-3 33.3 0-1 0.0 0-0 0.0 1 5 0 0 0 1 -6
Kyle BowenK. Bowen (#15) 11:41 2 3 0 1-3 33.3 0-0 0.0 0-2 0.0 0 3 0 0 0 3 +18
Tom WilsonT. Wilson (#12) 02:00 1 2 0 0-2 0.0 0-1 0.0 1-2 50.0 1 1 0 0 1 1 -6
Tom KoppensT. Koppens (#30) 05:30 0 0 1 0-0 0.0 0-0 0.0 0-0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 +10
TEAM TOTALS - 74 51 14 22-61 36.1 6-24 25.0 24-31 77.4 10 41 3 1 14 21 -

Four Factors

Team eFG% TOV% ORB% FT Rate
Perth 40.6% 7.9% 18.0% 40.6%
Melbourne 41.0% 15.8% 24.4% 50.8%

eFG% (Effective Field Goal %): Adjusts FG% for 3-pointers being worth more

TOV% (Turnover Rate): Turnovers per 100 possessions (lower is better)

ORB% (Offensive Rebound Rate): % of available offensive rebounds grabbed

FT Rate: Free throw attempts relative to field goal attempts